Mindfulness promotes the ability to deal with emotions, behaviours and situations so that a person is better equipped to choose their response.
Why mindfulness in schools?
Mindfulness has gained greater popularity in recent years, particular with its use among young people. There is growing evidence that practising mindfulness in schools can bring about significant benefits to behaviour and learning by impacting on self-regulatory abilities. It is something the whole school can get involved with, and is particularly beneficial around times when it might be necessary to refocus attention e.g. around SATs/assessment time, at the start and end of term or following a big school event.
Ready to get started? Try our fun mindfulness activity below to help support a calm classroom.
You will need:
- Berol colour broad markers
- Sticky notes
- Pencils
- Blank A4 sheet of paper
Mindfulness skills:
- Creativity
- Curiosity
- Observation
- Self-awareness
- Concentration
Activity steps:
1. Use your marker to write the word ‘Superhero’ in the centre of your A3 piece of paper.
2. As a whole class, discuss the children’s favourite superheroes. What do they have in common?
3. Encourage the children to notice both physical and non-physical attributes that superheroes share (e.g. physically strong, wears a costume, has special powers, brave, truthful, etc).
4. Hand out sticky notes to each child and ask them to use their markers to write down their favourite superhero characteristic. Invite children to come and stick their idea on the paper.
5. Next, introduce the idea that we are all unique or ‘extraordinary’ in some way. Ask the children to think of their own positive attributes (things they especially like about themselves, things they’re good at, things that are unique to them, times they have overcome a particular adversity etc).
6. Ask the children to write down or share these verbally with the rest of the class.
7. Do they notice any similarities between their own special attributes and those of superheroes?
8. Using their ideas and discussions, invite the children to design a superhero of themselves that focuses on their ‘super’ qualities. Encourage them to make their designs as colourful as possible to really bring them to life. Older children may want to add labels and annotations.
9. Encourage the children to focus on the positives, turning any received weaknesses into strengths (e.g. if a child wears glasses this could give them special x-ray vision).
We hope you enjoyed our mindfulness exercise for the classroom. Explore our wide range of markers to use in a range of mindfulness activities in the classroom and beyond.
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